Fish

Puls'Art White 2022

Domaine Einhart

Here's Puls'Art from Domaine Einhart, a natural, organic (Ecocert) macerated white wine classified as AOC Alsace. Don't confuse it with a Poulsard because of its name (the Poulsard grape variety is found in the Jura region, a little further south). This magical wine is called Puls’Art simply because it pulses, and skin-macerated Gewurztraminer is a great art—we affirm it.

Vinification

The Gewurztraminers used to produce Puls’Art, aged twenty-five years and sourced entirely on the estate, are harvested by hand and then destemmed. Maceration lasts one week, and fermentation is carried out using indigenous yeasts. Aging on fine lees is ten months in barrels, followed by unfiltered bottling. From the vine to the cellar, this wine was made without any additives.

Tasting

Puls’Art has a bright orange color. The first nose, very appealing, brings aromas of candied apricot and rose petals. The second nose, very fresh, evokes green cardamom. The attack on the palate is ample, balanced, with a velvety sensation. On the palate, we find the aromas of ripe apricot from the first nose. The finish is powerful and spicy, vibrant, "a limestone lollipop," according to the winemaker's expression. Decanting is recommended so that your Puls'Art spreads its wings and expresses its mineral and charming notes, both earthy and exotic. For pairings, it is all-terrain but also capable of the most delicate associations: do not hesitate to pair it with smoked fish, fine poultry, white meats, game birds, a wild mushroom risotto, and cheeses.

Learn more about the Einhart estate

In the northern part of the Alsatian vineyard, the Einhart estate is a ten-hectare family estate whose vines grow on the foothills of the Vosges mountains. The soil is clay-limestone and rich in fossils (muschelkalk, or shell limestone and oolite limestone, and lettenkohle or dolomitic limestone).

A family estate

Since 1990, Nicolas Einhart has been at the helm, now assisted by his son Théo. Faithful to his commitments to the TIFLO association, of which he is co-founder, Nicolas devotes his winemaking work to protecting the land and biodiversity, making wine without additives, refusing harmful phytosanitary products and maintaining ecological refuge areas. Its estate has been certified organic (Ecocert and AB) since 2011. The estate produces white wines from maceration or direct pressing and a Pinot Noir red.

The best of Alsatian terroirs

Entirely manual harvests, destemming of the bunches, light punching down and delicate pressing are characteristic of the estate, as well as the separate vinification of each terroir, aging on lees and the absence of filtration before bottling. The wines are pure grape, lively, powerful, invigorating, and transcribe the minerality of these very beautiful terroirs of the Vosges foothills.

Kuku Yodel White 2018

La Sorga

A dry white wine, Kuku Yodel reveals great finesse, freshness, and fruit on the nose. On the palate, the attack reminds some of an unfiltered white beer, others of a tropical lemonade. This wine is pleasant, fruity, floral, refreshing, and very fragrant. It evokes fruits such as peach, apricot, mandarin, lemon, lychee, passion fruit, and rhubarb, with a milky, yeasty finish, with the rich aroma of a summer meadow. It is made from Muscat of Alexandria, either as a single varietal or with a small proportion of Terret Bourret and Grenache Gris depending on the vintage. Kuku Yodel is a macerated white wine made from Muscat of Alexandria vines growing on the schist and clay-limestone soils of the high slopes of Hérault. The destemmed grapes macerate for forty-five days in vats, then the wine is aged for one year. Before bottling, it is neither filtered nor clarified, and no sulfites are added during the vinification process. Kuku Yodel should be drunk very chilled and can be kept for around ten years.

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Anthony Tortul loves old vineyards: he devotes his life to finding and vinifying them. Just as there are landless shepherds, he can be defined as a landless winemaker, in other words a wine merchant whose area of activity extends throughout Languedoc and, eastward, as far as Châteauneuf-du-Pape, in search of the best terroirs. Born in Foix, with six years of experience as a wine technician and oenologist in various vineyards in the south of France, he created La Sorga in 2008. His enthusiasm leads him on a path filled with favorites, and each of these favorites is a vineyard. The result is a dizzying mosaic of natural, lively, and spirited wines, which reinvents itself each year with around thirty cuvées per vintage. Few winemakers can include such a variety of grape varieties: the entire south of France is represented, with muscats, grenaches, picpoul, mauzac, carignan, cinsault, marsanne, alicante, braucol, duras, viognier, len-de-l'el, and tutti quanti.

I Vicini Moscato Blanc 2020

Jean-Yves Péron


I Vicini Moscato is a Muscat d'Asti vinified dry; it therefore offers the aromatic and musky nose specific to the grape variety, but without the syrupy side that is sometimes associated with it, as a very present tannic structure balances the whole. On the palate, it is rich and powerful; we find the charming aroma of Muscat in the retro-olfaction, but with the tension and freshness that the winemaker favors for his dry whites. It is a table wine, with power and presence: not really for an aperitif, but for gastronomy, no limits.
Jean-Yves Péron's "I Vicini" series is made from grapes harvested in Piedmont; for I Vicini Moscato, we are dealing with the famous muscats of the terroirs of Asti. They grow on very fine limestone soils, calcareous-magnesian, and the Asti site benefits from a cold air current that brings increased freshness compared to the rest of the region. The harvest, manual, is carried out on grapes at a fairly advanced phenolic maturity. Maceration is long, with three months of punching down, after which everything is racked in January, pressed and sent directly into 300-liter barrels (new barrels, one-wine barrels and two-wine barrels) for a year of aging. No filtration, no addition of sulfites. Straightness, tension, and freshness: a very fine mountain Muscat.

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Jean-Yves Péron embodies the natural renaissance of the beautiful Savoyard vineyard, which has long suffered from a somewhat flimsy image, not taken seriously enough. Yet, what treasures its varied soils and numerous ancient grape varieties produce!
Near Conflans, in Albertville (Savoie), Jean-Yves Péron skillfully combines committed viticulture and merchant winemaking, both under the banner of nature and organic high-altitude vines. Initially destined for a career in biochemistry, he quickly became drawn to the vine and trained as an oenologist in Bordeaux. He learned his trade as a winemaker with Thierry Allemand in Cornas, then with Bruno Schueller in Alsace, before spending some time in New Zealand and the United States. Jean-Yves's current vineyard, one and a half hectares of which have been biodynamic since the beginning, is divided between Conflans, near Albertville, and Fréterive, a little further down in the Isère Valley. Composed of micro-plots of vines, it is staggered between 350 m and 550 m above sea level and is worked entirely by hand. His trading activity, which he began in 2011, allows him to buy the harvest from organic winegrowers close to him (such as Raphaël Marin and Adrien Dacquin). Also, the construction of a new winery in 2017 allows him to increase production and collaborate with winegrowers from Northern Italy: Paolo Angelino in Casale Monferrato (Turin), Giorgio Barbero in Asti. This is a new dimension given to his work as a winemaker, allowing him to diversify the terroirs and deepen his experiences in winemaking and aging. Jean-Yves Péron's winemaking follows the principles of minimal intervention. On narrow and steep surfaces, his mountain vines receive no synthetic products, Jean-Yves preferring horsetail and nettle manure. The surrounding vegetation is very rich: it protects the vines and helps to strengthen them. The soils are grassed, mown and reworked with a pickaxe and winch. The harvest is entirely manual. Once vatted in whole bunches, the grapes, both red and white, undergo a semi-carbonic maceration which allows the extraction of fresh fruit aromas. This maceration time varies between five days and nine weeks depending on the vintage. The day before or two days before pressing, Jean-Yves performs foot-treading directly in the vat. After this fermentation, the musts are sent to barrels for aging on lees for twelve months in five hundred liter barrels of two or three wines (to limit the oaky sensation), followed by blending and resting in vats. No sulfites are added, or as little as possible, and the wines are not fined or filtered.

Kikiriki Black Red 2018

Clos Lentiscus

Elegance, purity, and a crisp minerality due to the limestone characterize the productions of Clos Lentiscus. The note of controlled oxidation, when present, does not dominate the tasting, and the wines are never deviant. The cavas are renowned for their exuberance, but those from Clos Lentiscus never have more than two grams of residual sugar per liter. The estate also produces still wines, red, white, and rosé.

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This Cocorico (in Catalan) is a red made from a blend of Tempranillo and Cariñena (Carignan). Aromatic and light, it comes in a one-liter bottle and is not a luxury: this distinguished gurgle, at the table and as an aperitif, will go well with everything. A very good wine for tapas and al fresco dining.

It is in Sitges, Catalonia, in the heart of the Garraf Natural Park, that Manel Avinyo and his brother Joan took over the family estate, renamed Clos Lentiscus by Manel. Even though Barcelona is only a half-hour drive away, the beauty of the landscape is striking and the immersion in nature is total: Mediterranean forests rub shoulders with Catalan scrubland (thyme, rosemary, rockrose, mastic tree which gave its name to the estate, etc.). The Penedès region also has a long winemaking history. Nestled in its gentle hills is Clos Lentiscus, in the Penedés appellation, on twenty hectares of sandy and clay-limestone soils facing due south at an altitude of 225 meters. According to historical documents, the family of Manel and Joan Avinyo has been established there since at least the 14th century. For a long time, the grapes were sold to local cooperatives, but since the two brothers took over the estate, organic and biodynamic farming has replaced conventional practices, the entire harvest goes into the house vintages, and organic and biodynamic practices have allowed this beautiful property to reconnect with its former prestige: in the 19th century, its wines were sold in France and as far away as the Americas. Manel quickly earned a nickname: The Bubbleman, a tribute to his talent for making cavas, the sparkling white wines characteristic of the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula, from native varieties that only Catalonia has the secret to: sumoll, ull de llebre, xarel·lo, malvasia from Sitges, cartoixà vermell, cariñena (carignan), accompanied by tempranillo and muscat from Alexandria. The vines are old, sometimes centuries old. No synthetic additives are used in the vineyard, and operations such as planting, pruning, de-budding, and harvesting are dictated by the lunar phases. Pollination is facilitated by the presence of beehives; sheep contribute to fertilization and control of the plant cover. Ringo, the white horse, is responsible for working the soil.

All In Wine 2018

Es d'aqui Jean Louis Pinto
A blend of two vintages and five grape varieties, four reds and one white – Carignan, Mourvèdre, Grenache, Cabernet Franc, and Muscat. Each grape variety is vinified separately, aged in old barrels, and blended before bottling. A beautiful, elegant, and spirited red, with a lovely bouquet of light flowers and red and black berries.
A natural wine with no added sulfites.

La Bueilloise White 2013

La Grapperie

A blend of young Chenin Blanc and Pinot d'Aunis vines growing on a flint-clay terroir. Harvested by hand at full maturity. Aged for twelve months on slats, without additives. Bottling is done by gravity without filtration, and disgorgement is done on the fly without the addition of preservatives. The Pineau d'Aunis brings a slight bitterness to the Chenin. Lively and intense bubbles, very well balanced.
A natural wine with no added sulfites.

Combe du Temps Red 2018,

Les Vignes du Domaine du Temps

A wine that stands the test of time, a preserved terroir, and natural vinification: Combe du Temps 2018 is a straightforward and vibrant red, made from a balanced blend of Syrah and Grenache. In the majestic setting of Cabardès, on the outskirts of Carcassonne, the Domaine du Temps has produced an intense, mineral, and expressive cuvée, where nature expresses itself without artifice.

An exceptional terroir and pure vinification

Located on stony clay-limestone soils, the vineyard benefits from a rare balance between freshness and dryness, perfect for revealing the finesse of Grenache and the depth of Syrah. Certified biodynamic since 1998 and dedicated to natural wine since 2015, the estate practices demanding viticulture: low yields, careful grape selection, and additive-free vinification. Carbonic maceration for each grape variety, fermentation with indigenous yeasts, no fining or filtration, and less than 2g of sulfur added before bottling. Aging takes place for nine months, including 20% in barrels, adding a subtle oaky touch without masking the fruit.

An intense and racy red

Combe du Temps boasts a deep garnet color that heralds beautiful concentration. The nose is a captivating blend of vibrant red fruits, sweet spices and mineral notes reminiscent of the earth and surrounding scrubland. On the palate, the freshness perfectly balances the tannic structure, offering a silky touch and a lingering, slightly salty and peppery finish.

Food and wine pairings and tasting moments

With its straight and fresh profile, this wine will pair equally well with a barbecue with friends or a refined meal. It pairs wonderfully with grilled meats, Mediterranean tapas, artisanal charcuterie, and smoky dishes. Served around 16°C, it will gain in expression after a short airing.

The Rosé Rosé 2022

Clos Des B
Desirably fruity, marked by red fruits and citrus zest (orange and lemon), the Rosé du Clos des B is (as its name suggests) a natural rosé wine emblematic of the sandy-schist terroir of the Gulf of Saint-Tropez and the unique microclimate of the hills of Grimaud. It welcomes us with its nose of red fruit sorbet, notes of small red fruits on the palate, and a zesty, citrusy finish. This wine is produced in the Côtes-de-Provence appellation and made from two southern grape varieties common in the region: 90% Grenache as the majority variety and 10% Cinsault. This is a direct-pressed rosé, without prior crushing, extracted using a vertical press after destemming the grapes and vinified in stainless steel vats. No crushing is performed. The two grape varieties ferment together in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats, without added sulfites. No fining, filtration, or addition of sulfites at bottling.

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Clos des B (initials of the two owners, Gwendolyn Berger and Jean-Jacques Branger) is located in Grimaud, in the Gulf of Saint-Tropez. They are therefore the proud producers of the very first natural cuvées from this geographical area. Those who know that this region is home to some interesting viticulture will avoid thinking of the celebrity seaside resort and swimming pool rosé: before the two Bs bought these three hectares of vines, all these wines went to the cooperative cellar of the Vignerons de Saint-Tropez. Driven by a "thirst for vines," as they put it, Gwendolyn and Jean-Jacques overcame administrative difficulties, restored the vineyard, and soon produced reds, rosés, and even a blanc de noirs. Their grape varieties are typical of the region: Grenache, Cinsault, Mourvèdre, growing on schist sands crisscrossed by quartz veins. The property benefits from a microclimate that protects the vines from humidity, disease, and frost. The viticulture and winemaking approach resolutely embraces organic (the estate has been in conversion since 2020), biodynamics, and natural methods. The wines are made without added sulfites, fining, or filtration. The wines of Clos des B are a true reflection of their terroir and climate: fresh, fruity, and very pleasant to drink.

Auxey Duresses Les Crais Blanc 2020,

Domaine de Chassorney
This Auxey-Duresses white, produced on the Les Crais plot, is remarkably pure. The ripeness of the grapes (obviously all-Chardonnay) is exceptional and is felt in the form of a pleasant roundness and generous fruit. Plenty of integrity, elegance, complexity, and tension.

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Through his entirely natural work, Frédéric Cossard gives voice to the terroirs and Burgundy wines, undistorted by agricultural chemicals. Having observed, during his years as a wine merchant, the existence of harmful viticultural practices, the winemaker used this counterexample to practice unadulterated viticulture. Thus, he produces vintages of purity and elegance without artifice that are among the most sought-after in Burgundy. Frédéric worked for a while as a wine broker before creating the Chassorney estate with his partner Laure in 1996: initially a few ares of vines in Saint-Romain, Auxey-Duresses and Savigny-lès-Beaune, and currently ten hectares spread across the Nuits-Saint-Georges, Pommard, Volnay, Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune and Bourgogne appellations. In 2006, he created his own trading house and buys organic grapes to vinify, according to his style and convictions, great vintages such as Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet, Pommard, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Chambolle-Musigny, Vosne-Romanée and several Beaujolais crus. The exercise is not limited to Burgundy, as vintages are made from grapes purchased in the Jura or Languedoc regions. At his place, the work of the soil and the vines is done as naturally as possible: regular ploughing by horse, no addition of chemical fertilizers or weedkillers. The vines are cared for according to the principles of biodynamics: homeopathic treatments based on essential oils, copper and sulfur in minimal doses. The harvest is entirely manual, carried out at full maturity, at the end of October. Reds or whites, classic Burgundies or more atypical or less "regional" bottles, Frédéric's vintages are rare and sought-after wines, which sometimes require waiting.

Concerto Red 2021

Jean-Pierre Robinot

Concerto is an organic and natural red wine from the terroirs north of the Loire (Jasnières and Coteaux du Loir). It bears the distinctive mark of Pineau d'Aunis, the grape variety from which it is made, as well as the inimitable touch of its creator, Jean-Pierre Robinot.

In the vineyard and in the winery

Through Concerto, master winemaker Jean-Pierre Robinot showcases Pineau d'Aunis grown on limestone soils. The harvest is carried out by hand and vinified in whole bunches with three weeks of maceration, which gives the wine body. Aged for a year in old barrels.

Tasting

All the typical characteristics of Pineau d'Aunis: spices, cranberry, pomegranate, and a touch of raspberry. Limestone and mineral notes, a touch of undergrowth, a touch of yeast and butter, a pure and light color. A touch of menthol and black pepper on the palate. Drink with a good roast beef or lamb, a delicately roasted pigeon, charcuterie, cured meats, and even uninhibited fish such as smoked mackerel or any other smoked seafood.

Learn more about Jean-Pierre Robinot

Anyone interested in natural wine in France has crossed paths with Jean-Pierre Robinot and has never forgotten this smiling, bouncing figure. Although it has not yet been proven that all wines resemble their winemaker (a study to be undertaken), the organic and natural wines produced by Jean-Pierre, warm, friendly and luminous, are in the image of their creator. After running the wine bar L’Ange Vin for nearly fifteen years, on rue Richard-Lenoir in Paris, Jean-Pierre returned to his native Chahaignes, a small village in the south of Sarthe. His dream is to acquire his vineyard and make natural wines, without added sulfites.

Great terroirs of the Loir and tuffeau cellars

Jean-Pierre therefore reclaims hillside wasteland, on great terroirs, as well as troglodyte cellars dug into the tuffeau. 2002 will be his first vintage. At the same time, under the brand L’Opéra des vins, he vinifies organic grapes purchased from local winemakers. A member of the S.A.I.N.S. natural viticulture association, Jean-Pierre Robinot practices strict organic viticulture practices, without chemical weeding or the addition of sulfites. The soil is worked and amended with natural composts. All harvests, carried out at maturity on healthy grapes, are done by hand. The location and climate favor noble rot.

SK Muskat Alejandria White 2022

Partida Creus
SK Muskat Alejandria is a deliciously fresh, fragrant, and aromatic white wine with a hint of orange. The nose receives a hint of marzipan, and the palate confirms this sensation by adding complex notes: lychee, pear, flowering meadow, plenty of freshness and crispness. A long, satiny finish. This splendid wine, made from Muscat of Alexandria (Moscatel), classified as Vino de Mesa (table wine), is vinified dry by Partida Creus. It goes very well with raw, grilled or sauced fish, spicy dishes such as fish or poultry curries, Middle Eastern, Indian and Sichuan cuisines.

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The Catalan winery Partida Creus is the creation of two Piedmontese from the Langhe (where wine is well-known), Antonella Gerosa and Massimo Marchiori, who first pursued careers as architects in Barcelona. But the wine bug tickled them, and soon they abandoned the big city and its sophistication for the vineyards of southern Catalonia, in Bonastre in Baix-Penedés. There they found a quantity of abandoned vineyards planted with a dizzying diversity of traditional Catalan grape varieties that they passionately revived to save these varieties – and their wines – from oblivion. For them, it's not just a matter of heritage rescue, no: it's a matter of taste and nature. Of natural wines, which they will continue to make from now on on these sandy, poor, clay-limestone or clay-gravel soils, poor and poorly irrigated, where the vines suffer to give their best juice. This is why their estate is as important from a winemaking perspective as it is from a historical perspective - we are talking here about the history of the vine in Catalonia. Massimo and Antonella practice organic, biodynamic viticulture, entirely manual and natural in order to give new life to these wines. Vinyater, sumoll, garrut, monastrell, ull de perdiu, ull de llebre, sumoll, queixal de llop, cariñena, trepat, subirat parent, maccabeu, parellada, pansé, bobal, cartoixà vermell and xarel·lo: Partida Creus is a veritable conservatory of native Catalan grape varieties. It also grows moscatel, grenache, merlot and cabernet (among others). Few wineries can boast growing so many different grape varieties. The wines reflect this diversity, with the winemakers striving to best convey the signature of the soil and the grape variety: single-variety wines are common among them, alongside extensive blends, all in the styles dear to Catalonia: still wine, "ancestral" sparkling wine, and even vermouth. The bottles themselves are works of art: bare glass, simply marked with two large stenciled initials that denote the vintage. The wines, fresh, vibrant, lush yet always straightforward and impeccably juicy and fruity, exude life. The arrival of a Partida Creus at the table always elicits exclamations of joy.

Volnay Qvevris Red 2020,

Domaine de Chassorney

The nose reveals beautiful notes of red fruits (strawberry), spices, and candied fruits. On the palate, it reveals warmth and power, with floral aromas and a great minerality on the finish. This warm, straightforward wine from the Volnay appellation, with notes of red and black fruits, is balanced and lively on the palate, with lovely, gently spicy notes. It comes from old Pinot Noir vines growing at the bottom of the slopes, on dense, stony soils of ferruginous red clay and limestone. The plots are steep, facing west-southeast and located between 230 and 280 meters above sea level. The vines are worked on horseback, respecting the soil and the earth. The harvest is manual and is carried out when the grapes are fully ripe. The grapes macerate in whole bunches. Aging in qvevri (buried Georgian-style terracotta jars) further develops the wine's velvety texture and depth.

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Through his entirely natural work, Frédéric Cossard gives voice to the terroirs and Burgundy wines, undeformed by agricultural chemicals. Having observed, during his years of trading, the existence of harmful viticultural practices, the winemaker used this counter-example to practice unadulterated viticulture. Thus, he produces vintages of purity and elegance without artifice that are among the most sought-after in Burgundy. Frédéric worked for a while as a wine broker before creating the Domaine de Chassorney with his partner Laure in 1996: initially a few ares of vines in Saint-Romain, Auxey-Duresses and Savigny-lès-Beaune, and currently ten hectares spread across the Nuits-Saint-Georges, Pommard, Volnay, Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune and Bourgogne appellations. In 2006, he created his own trading house and buys organic grapes to vinify, according to his style and convictions, great vintages such as Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet, Pommard, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Chambolle-Musigny, Vosne-Romanée and several Beaujolais crus. The exercise is not limited to Burgundy, as vintages are made from grapes purchased in the Jura or Languedoc regions. At his place, the work of the soil and the vines is done as naturally as possible: regular ploughing by horse, no addition of chemical fertilizers or weedkillers. The vines are cared for according to the principles of biodynamics: homeopathic treatments based on essential oils, copper and sulfur in minimal doses. The harvest is entirely manual, carried out at full maturity, at the end of October. Reds or whites, classic Burgundies or more atypical or less "regional" bottles, Frédéric's vintages are rare and sought-after wines, which sometimes require waiting.

Crucella Red 2020,

La Vinicola di Antonio Gismondi

Crucella is known for its undergrowth, mineral, and earthy nose, a lively and acidic attack on the palate, red fruits, cherry on the retro-olfaction, and tannins less present than the deep color would suggest. Certainly a good wine for laying down that will blossom with time. The only red from the estate, it is a beautiful blend of Merlot (33%), Sangiovese (34%), and the ancient local grape variety Freisa (33%), which imparts a slight hint of musky red fruit, but the overall wine is well balanced. The harvest macerates for five or six days in stainless steel vats, then the wine is aged for seven to ten months in the same type of vat.

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Antonio Gismondi's azienda is located in Cerreto Sanita, in the Benevento region of Campania. A microclimate gives this area an almost continental feel: humid winds from the Tyrrhenian Sea collide with the first ramparts of the Apennine mountain range, causing condensation in the air and lowering temperatures, which are significantly cooler and more humid than on the coast. If we add a temperature inversion phenomenon between day and night, which is common in the Apennine climate, the freshness of the wines from the Antonio Gismondi estate is nothing mysterious in this southern Italy, which is nevertheless known for its very hot climate. The estate is family-run: for generations, the Gismondi family has cultivated vines and made wine using the most traditional and natural methods, to which biodynamic techniques are added. For a long time, of the fifteen tons of grapes produced each year, one ton was reserved for on-site winemaking for family consumption, with the rest going to the local wine cooperative. It was their meeting with Massimo Marchiori and Antonella of Partida Creus that led Antonio and his wife Anabel to start producing natural wines at home from the entire harvest. The two-hectare vineyard is located between 350 and 380 meters above sea level, on clay and stony soils, with two-thirds facing south. The grape varieties are Merlot, Freisa and Sangiovese for the reds, and Falanghina and Malvasia di Candia for the whites.x

Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru les Folatières White 2019,

Fréderic Cossard

Through his entirely natural work, Frédéric Cossard gives voice to the terroirs and Burgundy wines, undistorted by agricultural chemicals. Having observed, during his years as a wine merchant, the existence of harmful viticultural practices, the winemaker used this counterexample to practice unadulterated viticulture. Thus, he produces vintages of purity and elegance without artifice that are among the most sought-after in Burgundy. Frédéric worked for some time as a wine broker before creating the domaine de Chassorney with his partner Laure in 1996: initially a few ares of vines in Saint-Romain, Auxey-Duresses and Savigny-lès-Beaune, and currently ten hectares spread across the Nuits-Saint-Georges, Pommard, Volnay, Bourgogne-Hautes-Côtes-de-Beaune and Bourgogne appellations. In 2006, he created his own wine trading house and buys organic grapes to vinify, according to his style and convictions, great vintages such as Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet, Pommard, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Chambolle-Musigny, Vosne-Romanée and several Beaujolais crus. The exercise is not limited to Burgundy, as vintages are made from grapes purchased in the Jura or Languedoc. At his place, the work of the soil and the vines is done as naturally as possible: regular plowing by horse, no addition of chemical fertilizers or weedkillers. The vines are cared for according to the principles of biodynamics: homeopathic treatments based on essential oils, copper and sulfur in minimal doses. The harvest is entirely manual, carried out at full maturity, at the end of October. Reds or whites, classic Burgundies or more atypical or less "regional" bottles, Frédéric's vintages are rare and sought-after wines, which sometimes require waiting.

This Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru comes from the Folatières plot, planted with very old vines. This antiquity is felt in the depth and structure of the wine, and it also benefits from superb aging qualities. A fine example of Chardonnay at its peak. Classy, complex, powerful, and precise; Puligny-Montrachet is a legendary wine, and this one lives up to its reputation. Endless pairing possibilities, long aging guaranteed.

Natural wine with no added sulfites.

SP Subirat Parent Blanc 2020,

Partida Creus
This 100% Subirat Parent wine is crisp and aromatic, with a nose of ripe white fruits, melon, and wildflowers. Agile on the palate, fresh and straightforward, lemony and slightly saline, it offers a long finish tinged with a delicate bitterness typical of the estate. Subirat Parent, one of the oldest Catalan grape varieties and a close relative of Malvasia, remains rare even in its country of origin. The clay-limestone soil enhances its freshness and integrity. The harvest is pressed after a three-day skin maceration. The must is settled and fermented with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel vats. Three months of rest in vats on fine lees before bottling.

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Partida Creus is an important estate, both from a winemaking and historical perspective – we're talking about the history of the vine in Catalonia. Massimo Marchiori and Antonella Gerosa, originally from Piedmont – and even from the Langhe region, where wine is well-known – first pursued careers as architects in Barcelona. But the wine bug bit them, and they soon abandoned the big city and its sophistication for the vineyards of southern Catalonia, in Bonastre in Baix-Penedés. There they found a wealth of abandoned vineyards planted with a dizzying diversity of traditional Catalan grape varieties, which they passionately revived to save these varieties – and their wines – from oblivion. On their part, it’s not just a matter of saving heritage, no: it’s a matter of taste and nature. Natural wines, which they will continue to make from now on on these sandy, poor, clay-limestone or clay-gravelly, poor and poorly irrigated lands, where the vines suffer to give their best juice. Massimo and Antonella practice organic, biodynamic, entirely manual and natural viticulture in order to give new life to these wines. Vinyater, sumoll, garrut, monastrell, ull de perdiu, ull de llebre, sumoll, queixal de llop, cariñena, trepat, ceciat parent, maccabeu, parellada, pansé, vinel.lo, bobal, cartoixà vermell or xarel.lo: it is a true conservatory of the native Catalan grape varieties that Partida Creus cares for. Moscatel, Grenache, Merlot, and Cabernet (among others) are also grown here. Few wineries can boast growing so many different grape varieties. The wines reflect this diversity, with winemakers striving to best convey the signature of the soil and the grape variety: single-varietal wines are common among them, alongside extensive blends, all in the styles dear to Catalonia: still wine, "ancestral" sparkling wine, and even vermouth. The bottles themselves are works of art: bare glass, simply marked with two large stenciled initials that denote the cuvée. The wines, fresh, vibrant, lush but always straightforward and impeccably juicy and fruity, breathe life. The arrival of a Partida Creus at the table always elicits cries of satisfaction.

Colline des anciens White 2021

Domaine Einhart

The aptly named Colline des Anciens is minerality personified: full of freshness and salinity, it is a dry white from Alsace with an alcohol content of 13.6% and a great aromatic depth. This minerality and aromatic depth reflect the great limestone terroir of the Rosheim hillsides: a clay-rich soil on a substrate of muschelkalk and pink limestone. The plots face south on a 20% slope, and the vines have an average age of thirty years. The blend of three Alsatian grape varieties is carried out as follows: the Riesling (40%) is directly pressed, while the Gewurztraminer (20%) and Pinot Gris (40%) are macerated for forty-eight hours. All the grapes come from the estate and are harvested by hand; both the viticulture and the work in the cellar are 100% free of additives and sulfites, and the wine is not filtered. Colline des Anciens is aged exclusively in Alsatian foudres (wooden vats of around a thousand liters).

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Located in the northern part of the Alsatian vineyard, horizontally above Strasbourg, the Einhart estate is a ten-hectare family estate whose vines are located on the hillsides that rise between the Alsace plain and the Vosges mountains. The soil is clay-limestone and rich in fossils (muschelkalk, i.e. shell limestone and oolite limestone, and lettenkohle or dolomitic limestone). Since 1990, Nicolas Einhart has been at the helm, now assisted by his son Théo. True to his commitments to the TIFLO association, of which he is co-founder, Nicolas devotes his winemaking work to the protection of the land and biodiversity, winemaking without inputs, the refusal of harmful phytosanitary products and the maintenance of ecological refuge zones. His estate has been certified organic since 2011. Like Jean-Marc Dreyer [link], he is resolutely moving towards skin maceration and produces white maceration wines (orange wines) in addition to a red Pinot Noir. Entirely manual harvesting, destemming of the bunches, light punching down and delicate pressing are characteristic of the estate, as well as the separate vinification of each terroir, aging on lees and the absence of filtration before bottling. The wines are pure grape, lively, powerful, invigorating, and transcribe the minerality of the very beautiful terroirs of the Vosges foothills.

Le Zudefruit Red 2021

Jérome Lambert

Delicious, delectable, a real pleasure, this Zudefruit from Jérôme Lambert, an organic and natural winemaker based in the Loire Valley, in the Layon region. A beautiful dark red color, with aromas of red fruits on the nose; on the palate, it is very supple, lively, and deep, with herbaceous notes and a real delicacy with hints of cherry and undergrowth. With a beautiful balance between fruity notes and earthy, spicy, peppery notes, Zudefruit is a natural wine from the Loire Valley, produced from a plot of Grolleau cultivated by Jérôme Lambert on the light, sandy, schistose soils found in southern Anjou. The harvest, carried out by hand, ferments in whole bunches for two weeks before pressing, then rests for nine months in fiberglass vats. To further explore the red wines of the Loire Valley, you can also look at the domaines La Grapperie or the Domaine Pic-Épeiche.

Learn more about Jérôme Lambert

On his four-hectare estate, entirely organic and planted with Chenin, Grolleau, Gamay and Cabernet Franc, Jérôme Lambert is as much a winemaker as he is a farmer: he raises chickens, pigs, sheep and takes this mixed crop-livestock activity very seriously, along with the production of typical Anjou charcuterie. His Loire Eden, in fact, is located in the south of Anjou, in Rablay-sur-Layon. The son of a winemaker, as a child, he already enjoyed picking grapes, crushing them, and letting them ferment. In 2003, he got his hands dirty, helping with the pruning of the vines at Philippe Cesbron's and practicing with a few grapes donated by local winemakers. The following year, his adventure truly began with twenty ares of vines, but while his estate grew year by year, it would only reach one hectare after fifteen years.

A journey towards nature

In 2003, Jérôme discovered that adding sulfites was detrimental to wines: he never added more and was satisfied with the result, without making too much of a fuss about it. It was only a little later that he learned about the existence of natural wines and understood that he was not alone. All his vintages since then have been natural, without added sulfites, and are nonetheless straightforward, drinkable and flawless. For him, even the wood of the barrels is an additive; this shows the attention he pays to the naturalness and truth of the vine.

Royal Canette White 2016

La Sorga

This 100% Colombard white wine comes from grapes grown on basalt sand and Villafranchian limestone soils in Adissan. Antony Tortul selected the most concentrated grapes from the plot and created a blend of direct pressing and maceration with a little flotation (clarified must). The whole was aged in vats for eleven months. The exotic fruit notes of this wine pair very well with fish in a creamy white wine sauce or in matelote. It has a ten-year aging potential.

Muscana White 2022

Domaine Einhart

Muscana is an organic (Ecocert and AB labels) and natural dry white wine from Alsace from Domaine Einhart. Classified as AOC Alsace, this beautifully complex dry white is Domaine Einhart's homage to the Muscat grape variety.

Vinification

Muscana is a 100% Alsace Muscat, hand-harvested when overripe. The vines are approximately twenty-five years old and grow on the splendid oolitic limestone (muschelkalk) terroirs in the Fleckenstein, Westerberg, and Meyen localities. The harvest is destemmed, maceration in vats lasts one week, and fermentation is carried out using indigenous yeasts. The wine is aged in stainless steel vats on fine lees and is not filtered at bottling.

Tasting

Muscana offers a beautiful orange-amber color with superb brightness. The first nose offers rich, slightly smoky aromas typical of overripe Muscat berries. A second, very fine nose brings a hint of citrus fruit that encourages tasting. On the palate, the attack is straightforward and ample, accompanied by a melted acidity expressed through notes of candied quince. The finish is invigorating, with melted tannins linked to the maceration. We recommend decanting Muscana to help it develop its splendid aromas and serving it with choice dishes: fresh or smoked fish, vegetables including asparagus, white meats and foie gras.

Learn more about Domaine Einhart

In the northern part of the Alsatian vineyard, Domaine Einhart is a ten-hectare family estate whose vines grow on the foothills of the Vosges Mountains. The soil is clay-limestone and rich in fossils (muschelkalk, or shell limestone and oolitic limestone, and lettenkohle or dolomitic limestone).

A family estate

Since 1990, Nicolas Einhart has been at the helm, now assisted by his son Théo. True to his commitments to the TIFLO association, of which he is co-founder, Nicolas devotes his winemaking work to protecting the land and biodiversity, making wine without inputs, refusing harmful phytosanitary products, and maintaining ecological refuge areas. His estate has been certified organic (Ecocert and AB) since 2011. The estate produces white wines from maceration or direct pressing and a Pinot Noir red.

The best of Alsatian terroirs

Entirely manual harvests, destemming of the bunches, light punching down, and delicate pressing are characteristic of the estate, as well as the separate vinification of each terroir, aging on lees, and the absence of filtration before bottling. The wines are pure grapes, lively, powerful, invigorating, and transcribe the minerality of these very beautiful terroirs in the Vosges foothills.

Mensonge à Papa Red 2020,

Belly Wine Experiment

Here is a light, fresh, supple, and fruity red that proudly bears the banner of Gamay from two regions: Auvergne and Beaujolais. It is the result of a blend of equal parts of these two origins of the same grape variety, neither entirely identical nor entirely different. An ode to Gamay, in a way. These Gamays from Auvergne and Beaujolais are first slowly pressed, then their must is added to whole bunches for a fifteen-day carbonic maceration. Aging takes place in fiberglass vats. Classified as a Vin de France and with an alcohol content of 13.5%, it will be wonderful as an aperitif or with a meal, or just to have a good time.

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Founded and run by Claire Sage and Aimé Duveau, located in Chanteuges (Haute-Loire), Belly Wine Experiment is as much an experience as a winemaking business. The creative duo has it in spades: Claire is the sister of Adrien Sage, a fan of underwater wine aging but above all an importer of Catalan wines. Hence the presence of Catalan grape varieties in Belly Wine Experiment's blends, alongside Burgundy, Auvergne or Jura grape varieties, readily in the same bottle. Aimé is the son of Manu Duveau, a winemaker-poet from Auvergne, a former stonemason and a great winemaker of local Gamays at his Domaine de l'Égrappille. The uniqueness of Belly Wine Experiment is the exoticism (in the literal sense) of the blends, with Xarel lo from Catalonia being able to rub shoulders, for example, with Gamay from Puy-de-Dôme with the utmost naturalness. The wines are made using semi-carbonic maceration, without the addition of chemical inputs or excessive manipulation in the cellar. The house is also known for its very high-quality, vinous perries.